Essay: New media and terrorism

The new form of media available on online web services or in other words the internet media is known as new media. New media consists of various webs services such as social networking sites, online data, search engines, blogs, video games, e-mail etc.
Most of the technologies described as new media are generally digital, which often have characteristics of being manipulated, networkable, interactive, dense and compressible. Some of the examples can be the websites, internet, video games augmented reality, computer multimedia, DVD’s, and CD. New media are frequently contrasted to old media such as radio, television and print media, although scholars in communication and media studies have criticised rigid distinctions based on oldness and novelty. New media generally does not include feature films, television programmes (only analog broadcast), books, magazines, or publications that are printed or paper based unless they contain some digital interactivity enabled technologies.
A defining characteristic of the new media is dialogue. New Media generally transmits content through conversation and connection. It enables people to share, comment on, and discuss a wide variety of topics. Unlike any of the past technologies, New Media is generally grounded on an interactive community.
New Media most commonly refers to the content available on-demand through the Internet, accessible on any digital device, usually containing interactive user feedback and creative participation. Common examples of new media include websites such as online newspapers, blogs, or wikis, video games, and social media.
Social Networking Sites
A social networking site is a platform to build social networks or social relations among people who share similar interests, activities, backgrounds or real-life connections. A social networking site generally consists of representation of each user, his or her social links and a wide variety of additional services such as career services.[1]
Social networking sites are the web-based services that allow people to create a public profile, to create a list of users with whom to share connections, and to view and to cross the connections within the system.
Most of the social networking sites are generally web-based and they provide means for users to interact over the Internet, such as e-mail and instant messaging. Social network sites are varied and they incorporate new information and communication tools such as, video, photo, sharing,bogging and mobile connectivity.
Online community services are generally sometimes considered as a social network service, though in a broader sense, social network service usually means an individual-centred service whereas online community services are group-centred. Social networking sites allow users to share ideas, pictures, posts, activities, events, and interests with people in their network.
Social networking sites as the web-based services that allow people to build a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, express a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and view and travel across their list of connections and those made by others within the system. The nature of these connections can vary from site to site.
HISTORY OF SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
The potential for computer networking administration to encourage recently enhanced types of computer mediated interceded social collaboration was recommended early on. Efforts to bolster informal communities through computer networking intervened correspondence were made in numerous early online administrations, including Usenet, ARPANET, LISTSERV, and Bulletin Board Services (BBS). Numerous prototypical elements of person to person communication destinations were likewise present in online administrations, For example, America Online, Prodigy, Compu Serve, ChatNet and The Well. Early long range informal communication on the World Wide Web started as summed up online groups, for example, Theglobe.com (1995), Geocities (1994) and Tripod.com (1995). A large portion of these early groups concentrated on uniting individuals to communicate with each other through visit rooms, and urged clients to share individual data and thoughts by means of individual pages by giving simple to-use distributed devices and free or reasonable webspace. A few groups, for example, Classemates.com took an alternate methodology by essentially having individuals connection to each other by means of e-mail locations. PlanetAll began in 1996.
In the late 1990s, client profiles turned into a focal component of long range informal communication destinations, permitting clients to gather arrangements of “friends” and hunt down different clients with comparable interests. New long range interpersonal communication strategies were created before the end of the 1990s, and numerous locales started to grow more propelled elements for clients to discover and oversee friends. This fresher era of person to person communication destinations started to prosper with the development of SixDegrees.com in 1997, took after by Makeoutclub in 2000, Hub Culture and Friendster in 2002 and soon turned out to be a piece of the Internet standard. Be that as it may, on account of the country’s high web entrance rate, the primary mass long range informal communication webpage was the South Korean administration, Cyworld, propelled as an online journal based website in 1999 and person to person communication highlights included 2001. It additionally got to be one of the principal organizations to benefit from the offer of virtual goods. Friendster was trailed by MySpace and LinkedIn a year later, and in the long run Bebo. Friendster turned out to be extremely mainstream in the Pacific Islands. Orkut turned into the main mainstream person to person communication administration in Brazil (albeit a large portion of its first clients were from the United States) and rapidly developed
in prominence in India (Madhavan, 2007). Attesting to the quick increment in long range interpersonal communication locales’ prevalence, by 2005, it was accounted for that Myspace was getting more site visits than Google.Facebook, dispatched in 2004, turned into the biggest informal communication site in the world in mid 2009. Facebook was initially presented (in 2004) as a Harvard person to person communication site growing to different colleges and in the long run, anybody.
TERRORISM
Terrorism is the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political purposes. It is the systematic use of terror as a means of coercion
In other words, terrorism is the use of violence or the threat of violence, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political goals.
According to Muslim scholars from around the world, “All acts of aggression unjustly committed by individuals, groups or states against human beings including attacks on their religion, life, intellect, property or honor.”
New Terrorism
New terrorism is the kind of terrorism through or with the help of internet where terrorists make use
social media for influencing people’s mind to spread terrorism.
They use social networking sites to manipulate people, to recruit people, to spread violence, to raise funds and for the propaganda of their ideology.
They also use various new media applications including codes, code languages to hide identity, hacking websites and various other purposes. They brainwash people by offering them jobs, persuading and luring them to indulge in terrorist activities.
Terrorism 2.0
As Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is advancing and transforming how we live, it is also changing the terrorism era. Advances in Information Technology has brought a new era of Terrorism 2.0 where terrorist groups now make use of high advancement of Information Technology to accomplish their goals. Social Networking Sites have now been used actively by terrorist groups for communication, recruiting new members, transmitting training videos and materials and propaganda.
For example, A terrorist website provides details on how to make Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), a type of bomb that we can make from locally available materials. Other terrorist websites are distributing materials (tutorials and books) online on how to make bombs, poison and conduct a terrorist attack. Some of the popular terrorist books that circulate online are The Anarchist’s Cookbook and The Mujahideen Poisons Handbook.
Various Definitions of Terrorism
United Nations
The UN General Assembly Resolution 49/60 (adopted on December 9, 1994), titled “Measures to Eliminate International Terrorism,” contains a provision describing terrorism:
Criminal acts intended or calculated to provoke a state of terror in the general public, a group of persons or particular persons for political purposes are in any circumstance unjustifiable, whatever the considerations of a political, philosophical, ideological, racial, ethnic, religious or any other nature that may be invoked to justify them.
UN Security Council Resolution 1566 (2004) gives a definition:
Criminal acts, including against civilians, committed with the intent to cause death or serious bodily injury, or taking of hostages, with the purpose to provoke a state of terror in the general public or in a group of persons or particular persons, intimidate a population or compel a government or an international organization to do or to abstain from doing any act.
A UN panel, on March 17, 2005, described terrorism as any act “intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population or compelling a government or an international organization to do or abstain from doing any act.”
European Union
The European Union defines terrorism for legal/official purposes in Art.1 of the Framework Decision on Combating Terrorism (2002). This provides that terrorist offences are certain criminal offences set out in a list comprised largely of serious offences against persons and property which: given their nature or context, may seriously damage a country or an international organization where committed with the aim of: seriously intimidating a population; or unduly compelling a Government or international organization to perform or abstain from performing any act; or seriously destabilizing or destroying the fundamental political, constitutional, economic or social structures of a country or an international organization.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom’s Terrorism Act 2000 defines terrorism to include an act “designed seriously to interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system”. An act of violence is not even necessary under this definition.
FBI definition of terrorism: The unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a Government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.
United States
The United States has defined terrorism under the Federal Criminal Code. Title 18 of the United States Code defines terrorism and lists the crimes associated with terrorism. In Section 2331 of Chapter 113(B), defines terrorism as: “…activities that involve violent… or life-threatening acts… that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State and… appear to be intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and…(C) occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States…”
US Patriot Act of 2001:
Terrorist activities include:
threatening, conspiring or attempting to hijack airplanes, boats, buses or other vehicles.threatening, conspiring or attempting to commit acts of violence on any “protected” persons, such as government officials any crime committed with “the use of any weapon or dangerous device,” when the intent of the crime is determined to be the endangerment of public safety or substantial property damage rather than for “mere personal monetary gain
Indian Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002
The Act defined what constituted a “terrorist act” and who a “terrorist” was, and granted special powers to the investigating authorities described under the Act. In order to ensure that discretionary powers granted to the investigating agencies were not misused and human rights violations were not committed, specific safeguards were built into the Act
TERRORIST
A terrorist is a person or a member of a group who uses or advocates terrorism. He is a person who uses violence, mayhem and destruction or the threat of those things to coerce people or countries into taking a certain action.
A terrorist may be motivated by religious fervour, politics, or just plain old fashioned greed.
Terrorist has at its root the word “terror,” which comes from the Latin word terrorem, meaning great fear. Great fear is exactly what terrorists hope to create so they can manipulate the situation to their benefit. The label terrorist is a subjective one. To the British, the American colonists who destroyed shiploads of tea in Boston Harbour in 1773
ANTI – SOCIAL ELEMENTS
Anti-social elements are people who are unwilling to meet and be friendly with other people. They have a type of behaviour which is annoying or upsetting to other people. These people are hostile to or disruptive of the established social order; marked by or engaging in behaviour that violates the accepted customs and conventions. They are antagonistic toward or disrespectful of others.
They are unsociable hostile and unfriendly towards others. They are opposed and detrimental to social order or the principles on which society is constituted:
1. To find out the relationship of new media and new terrorism.
2. To find out the effectiveness of Social Networking websites in the dissemination of anti social thoughts in the society.
3. To find out whether social networking websites are having certain impact among the youths.
4. To trace out the main reason for the usage of this medium by terrorist organisation.
1. The new media is very effectively used by anti-social organisations to disseminate their messages
2. The social networking website has a negative impact on youth.
3. The anti-social organisations are social networking sites to terrorise people as well as recruit
people.
4. The social networking websites don’t have censorship and anti-social organisations are misusing
them to manipulate youth.
The advancements in the technology has brought a new era in terrorism where Social Networking sites have become a huge platform of communication with a wide range of usage from the transfer of message to propaganda and recruitment of new followers in terrorist groups. At the same time, during the terrorist attacks people use social Networking sites for the exchange of information, mobilizing, uniting and raising money for the victims. Due to the affordability, convenience, and broad reach of social media platforms such as Facebook, Youtube and Twitter, terrorist organisations have increasingly used social media to further & achieve their goals and spread their message. Attempts have been made worldwide by various governments and agencies to prevent the use of social media by terrorist organizations. There there can be various types of functions of social Networking websites depending upon the user, how they want to use it. It can be used in a positive or negative way depending on their state of mind.
Joe Lieberman, the Chairperson of the Senate Homeland Security Committee has been one of the person who has been demanding that social media companies should not permit terrorist groups to use their tools. In 2008, Lieberman and the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs issued a report titled “Violent Islamist Extremism, the Internet, and the Homegrown Terrorist Threat”. The report stated that the internet is one of the main drivers of the terrorist threat to the United States and the whole world. In the report they stated that the terrorist groups are actively using the social networking sites daily and the use of these youth-dominated websites is increasing day by day and in the coming time it can prove as big threat to the security of the countries all around the world.
Namosha Veerasamy, a researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Pretoria in 2012 represented the methods and functions that terrorists have come to rely on through the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure. This discussion sheds light on the technical and practical role that ICT infrastructure plays in the assistance of terrorism and various activities of terrorist groups around the world.
A March 2015 report from the Brookings Institution, an American think tank based on Think tank row in Washington, D.C, estimates that there at least about 46,000 Twitter accounts run by supporters of the Islamic State (also known as ISIL or ISIS), a group of violent extremists that currently occupies parts of Iraq and Syria. The group is also posting violent videos and recruiting materials on various other digital platforms, posing a dilemma for Silicon Valley companies like Google, Youtube, Facebook, Instagram and others as well as traditional news publishers. For example, Facebook is in struggle with whether or not to allow videos of beheading to be viewed on its platform, and on March 16, 2015, again modified its “community standards”
According to Professor Gabriel Weimann a professor of communication at the department of Haifa University, Israel. In his research (2011) New Media & New Terrorism (Freedom & Terrorism) shows how the new advances in the technology has changed online communication of terrorist from one-directional to bi-directional with various interactive capabilities like chat-rooms, social networking websites, video-sharing sites etc. He gave accounts on websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, Flicker and various other websites and how the terrorists are using these websites actively for manipulating people, for recruiting people, for propaganda of their ideology and to raise funds for their organization. According to him because of the wide reach of social networking websites and a number of users, terrorist organisations opted this new platforms to spread terrorism and radicalize the violence.
Joseph Kunkle in 2015, a high level TSA/Homeland Security manager at the Office of Security Technology, Transportation Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Washington, D.C. said that the social media framework of terrorist groups is targeting disenfranchised youth with complex, fictional information and creating grassroots terrorists within the U.S. borders. He also added that as a result of that foreign jihadists groups are enhancing their opportunities to attack U.S. by means of a multimedia, hybrid community participant strategy designed to influence the citizen extremists toward orchestrate ideological movements, violence, shape opportunities to recruit within the United States from various unfolding world events, and encourage domestic terrorists to set their own goals and take direct action with open-source and open-ended jihad at home.
Robert Mueller, the Director of FBI noted that the terrorists organizations are increasingly using the Internet to communicate with people, proselytize, conduct operational planning, train and to obtain financial and other logistic support and that is a growing and increasing concern. He also said that the increasing publicity about Internet computer security vulnerabilities may encourage terrorists organizations interest in attempting a possible computer network attacks or cyberattacks also.
The counterterrorism expert Dr. Anthony Bergin, the deputy director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute says that, Increasingly, terrorist organizations and their sympathizers are using predominantly Western online communities like MySpace, Facebook, and Second Life, as well as their Arabic equivalents. He also noted that terrorist organizations view these youth-dominated social networking sites as recruitment tools “in the same way a pedophile might look at those sites to potentially groom would-be victims.”
Robert Hannigan, the new head of Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) which is a British intelligence and security organisation spoke about how ISIS terrorists in Iraq and Syria have “embraced the web.” He also noted that terrorists are now able to hide their identities using encryption tools which were at one time only available to government agencies. ISIS has proved fluent in Twitter, Youtube, Tumblr Instagram, internet memes and other social media. He also added that their posting activity has ramped up during a recent offensive, reaching an all-time high of almost 40,000 tweets in one day as they marched into the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.
According to Dr. Maura Conway journal from the department of Law and Government, Dublin City University in the journal “Terrorism & the Internet: New Media-New threat.” The Core terrorist uses of the internet: Information Procedure. This refers to efforts by terrorists groups to engage in propaganda, publicity and ultimately psychology warfare. The advent of internet and the the world wide web in particular have significantly increased the opportunities for terrorist groups to attain publicity. It can also take the form of historical information, manifestos, profiles of leaders and so on. But the terrorists groups can also use the internet as a tool of psychological warfare through spreading misinformation, disseminating horrific images and delivering threat.
For the study of “New Terrorism and New Media: Uses and Abuses of Social Networking Sites by Terrorist Organisations” the research will be done by the method of Content Analysis, Interview and Questionnaire
Content analysis is an increasingly popular method for communication researchers. Modern content analysis developed primarily as a way for analyzing mass communication messages. The most widely accepted definition of content analysis is defined as a research technique for the objective, systematic and quantitative description of the manifest content of communication. In content analysis, elements (called the units of observation) of the phenomenon under study (called units of analysis) are coded and analyzed to reveal information. Therefore, content analysis was chosen as the method of inquiry for this study.
Interview method seeks to cover both a fatal and a meaning of level, though it is usually more difficult to interview on a meaning level. Interviews are particularly useful for getting the story behind a particular experiences. The interviewer can pursue in depth information around the topic. Interviews may be useful as follow-up to certain respondents to questionnaires.
The interview will be conducted on different people involving students from L.P.U., experts from the field of journalism and mass communication, psychology and new media.The questions will aim at finding out how social networking sites are used by terrorist organizations in the dissemination of terrorism thoughts in the society and its impact on youth. Their answers will further be analysed for the purpose of Research.
The questionnaire will find out the effectiveness of messages uploaded on social networking websites by the anti- social organisations. The questionnaire will comprise of 15 close ended and bi-polar questions targeting 100 students from different blocks of L.P.U.
1. Gender of the Respondent
The above pie chart shows the gender of respondent involved in the survey. The sample size of this study is 100 and out of that 61% are male and 39% are female respondents.
2. Age of the Respondent
The above pie chart depicts that the age of respondents involved in this study. According to collected data 52% of respondents are between the age group 21yrs-25yrs followed by 35% which are between the age group 15yrs-20yrs and 13% are between the age group of 26yrs-30yrs, therefore we can conclude that majority of the respondents are between 21yrs-25yrs.
3. Usage of Social Networking Websites.
The above pie chart shows the usage of social networking websites. The pie chart depicts 86% of students use social networking websites daily followed by 10% students who use social networking websites weekly, 3% students use monthly and 1% don’t use social networking sites. So according to the above collected data we can conclude that most of the students use social networking websites daily.
4. Awareness regarding the term New Media and New Terrorism
The above pie chart shows awareness regarding the term new media and new terrorism. The pie chart depicts that 51% of the respondents are aware about the term new media and new terrorism and 49% are not aware about this term. So we can analyse that more than half of the students are aware about the term new media and new terrorism.
5. Understanding of the term New Terrorism
In the collected response from about 100 students about 1/3rd of the people didn’t have any idea about the term New Terrorism & New Media. Whereas most of the people had wrong perception about the term and were not clear about the meaning of the term. Among them there were few students who had clear idea about this term and gave answers :
1. It is when terrorists make use of internet to manipulate people and brainwash them to spread
violence.
2. Terrorism using media, social media, new media applications including codes, code
languages, hacking websites, offering jobs, persuading and luring persons to indulge in terrorist
activities.
3. Use of social media for influencing people’s mind to spread terrorism.
4. Propagating the ideology of terrorists through internet
5. Using new media for propagating terrorism and violence etc
From this we can conclude that most of the people were not aware of the term New Terrorism and there were only few people who had idea about this term and gave answers.
6. Awareness of the activeness of terrorist organisations on social networking
websites
The above pie chart shows that 90% of the students are aware about the activeness of the terrorist organisations on social networking websites and 10% are not aware about the activeness of the terrorist on social networking websites. Therefore we can conclude that majority of the students are aware about the activeness of the terrorist on social networking websites.
7. Usage of social networking websites by terrorist organisations for the
dissemination of terrorism.
The above pie chart shows that 78% of the students agree with the statement followed by 15% who strongly agree with the statement whereas 6% students disagree and 1% students strongly
disagree with the fact that social networking websites are used by terrorist for the dissemination of terrorism. Therefore we conclude that most of the students agree with the statement that the social networking websites are used by terrorists for the dissemination of terrorism.
8. Terrorist organisations which are active on social media
The above pie chart shows that 50% of the students think that ISIS is active on social media followed by 43% which think all of these organizations are active on social media, 5% think Al-Qaeda is active on social media and 2% think that Boko Haram is active on social media. So it shows that most of the people think that ISIS is the terrorist organization which is active on social media.
9. Active terrorist group accounts on social networking websites ?
The above pie chat shows that 33% of the people have seen active terrorist accounts on Youtube, followed by 30% who have seen active terrorist accounts on Facebook, 31% have seen active terrorist accounts on all these websites, 6% have seen active terrorist accounts on Twitter and no one has seen active terrorist account on Instagram. So from this we can analyse that most of the people have seen active terrorist accounts on Youtube.
10. Purpose of using social networking websites by terrorist organizations
The above pie chart shows that 39% students think that terrorists are using social networking websites to do all the above given things, followed by 25% who think that terrorists are using social networking websites to spread terrorism and recruit people, 23% think that terrorist are using social networking websites to manipulate people, 12% think that terrorist are using social networking websites for the propaganda of their ideology and 1% think that terrorist are using social netwoking websites to raise funds for their organization. From this we can conclude that most of the people think that terrorists are using social networking websites to do all the above given activities.
11. Success of terrorist organizations in their motive
The above pie chart shows that 42% of people don’t have any opinion regarding the success of terrorist organization in their motive followed by 40% who think that terrorists are successful in their motive, 16% think that terrorist organisations are very successful in their motive and 2% think that the usage of social networking websites by terrorist organisations has no impact. So from this we can conclude that most of the people have don’t have any opinion about the success of terrorist organizations in their motive.
12. Impact on the mind of the Respondents
The above pie chart shows that 55% students say that it has no impact on their mind, followed by 26% who say that it has low impact on their mind, 10% say that it has moderate impact on their mind and 9% say that it has huge impact on their mind. So from this we can conclude that more than half of the people think that it has doesn’t has any kind of impact on their mind.
13. Danger for the security of the world by the use of social networking websites by
the terrorist organisations
The above pie chart shows that 58% students agree with the statement that the use of social networking websites can prove dangerous for the security of the world followed by 30% who strongly agree with the statement. 8% of the students have no opinion regarding the statement and
4% of the students disagree with the statement. Therefore we can conclude that more than half of the students agree with the statement that use of social networking websites by terrorist organisations can prove dangerous for the society.
14. Measures taken by social networking websites to suspend accounts associated
with terrorist links
The above pie chart shows that 45% students agree with the statement that social networking sites are taking measures to suspend accounts associated with terrorist links followed by 25% who has no opinion about the measures taken by social networking websites to suspend terrorist accounts. 16% students disagree with the statement and 14% students strongly agree with the statement. So from this we can find out that most of the students agree with the statement that social networking websites are taking measures to suspend accounts associated with terror links.
15. Use of social networking websites by terrorist is a big issue & there is a need to
pay attention towards this issue more than other issues
The above pie chart shows that 60% of the students agree with the statement that use of social networking websites by terrorists is a big issue and there is a need to pay attention towards this issue more than other issues followed by 25% students who strongly agree with the statement, 7% of the students disagree with the statement and 8% students has no opinion about the statement. From this we can conclude that most of the students agree with the statement that use of social networking websites by terrorists is big issue and there is a need to pay attention towards this issue more than other issues.
16. Dedicated department for the tracking of anti-social elements on social
networking websites
The above pie chart shows that 58% of the students agree with the statement that there should be a dedicated department for the tracking of anti-social elements on social networking websites followed by 27% who strongly agree with the statement, 13% students have no opinion about the statement and 2% of the students disagree with the statement. From this we can say that most of the students think that there should be a dedicated department for the tracking of anti-social elements unsocial networking websites.
17. How this problem can be tackled
In the collected response from about 100 students about 1/4th of the people didn’t have any suggestion about how to tackle this problem. Whereas most of the people gave their suggestions regarding how to tackle this problem. Among them there were few students who provided very valuable suggestions to tackle this problem:
1. A mechanism should be developed and check should be made by all sites that whatever is being
uploaded on social networking sites does not in any way encourage violence and terrorism.
2. Proper investigation should be done so that terrorist could not use such sites to disseminate the
information. While creating the account on such social media sites, information like address,
Adhar card number, Voter ID, PAN card should be compulsory, profession etc should be
mandatory to fill.
3. What terror is for us is patriotism for others and vice versa, the only way to solve this problem is
to eliminate it from its root. Terror exists in the mind of people, once removed it cannot be
replanted.
4. Social networking websites should be constantly monitored and any kind of content propagating
violence and terrorism should not be allowed to be uploaded or removed at the earliest.
5. I personally think they must be other solutions because just stopping them for not using any
social networking sites would not have any impact on them. They will remain same with same
mind set to spread terrorism. Nations should come together and take some strict actions
towards them.
Interviews
For the research project on the topic New Terrorism and New Media: Uses and Abuses of Social Networking Sites by Terrorist Organisations. I interviewed two professors from the Faculty of LPU. The interview were required to get an expert view on the topic so that it could help me in the analysis of the data. The faculty with whom I conducted the interview were Dr. Pardeep Kumar from the department of Psychology, an expert on Psychology and Dr. Rajdeep Roy form the department of Journalism, an expert on New Media and Terrorism.
The first interview that I took was of Dr. Pardeep Kumar, an expert on Psychology. The questions that were asked were related to the Psychology of the youth and the psychological impact of such manipulative content on their mind.
These days the various anti social elements, especially terrorists have become very active on social networking sites. Although Dr. Pradeep was not familiar with the term New Media and New Terrorism but he was able to make out the meaning of the term which according to him was make out the meaning of the term which according to him was related to use of social networking sites by terrorist organisations. These days various anti-social elements especially terrorists have become very active on social networking sites Youtube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are some of the most commonly used social networking sites by terrorists. The main target of the terrorists on social networking sites are the youth because psychology of the youth is such that they are risk taking. The unemployment, lack of opportunities and thus an ideal mind causes frustration and instills a sense of anger within them. As a result the unfulfilled aspirations youth further leads them to wrong path.The youth become easy target of these terrorist organisations as they are still young and innocent and thus can be brainwashed easily by them.Moreover, the big promises for money made by terrorists lures youth and they they get into their trap without thinking of the consequences. These terrorist groups are very experienced and clever. They directly try to hit people in their mind and brainwash them even if they are educated people such as software engineers etc.They understand the psychology of people especially youth and draft they message in such a way that it leaves an imprint on the minds of their targets who are slowly drifted away from the right path and get caught in theirs traps even by the conversation of half an hour or so. Instant messages are given one by one and the youth are not given a chance to rationally think.Big dreams are shown and people are manipulated in the name of religion.They are manipulated in such a way that they have to fight their religion if they want to please allah and go to heaven and if they don’t follow what they would go to hell.Such terrorists are well acquainted with beliefs and psyche of the people of a particular religion which is Islam and thus usually target muslims and brainwash them.Thus ,youth because of their big aspirations to achieve a lot in a short time further drifts them towards the wrong path.Some children who lack proper guidance and are unable to make rational decisions get into their traps very quickly. Moreover , there are some anti psychol or anti social people who from the beginning have a tendency to do mischiefs and thus even well educated individuals are brainwashed by the terrorists very easily.Thus, in the coming time ,use of social networking sites by terrorist organisations would become one of the biggest threat and an issue of primary concern.Just as it is said that the power of pen can do great wonders and instigate masses,these days misuse of social networking sites by anti social elements is turning out to be a great threat.Thus, to protect youth from getting manipulated ,awareness should be spread among people regarding such miscreants.
Every citizen of every nation should understand the responsibility and not leave everything on the government.It is the responsibility of parents,teachers,educational institutes and each and every people to educate and spread awareness to curb such activities.Any kind to anti social activity by anti social elements should be brought to notice at the earliest infront of police or responsible authorities to completely eradicate such activities.No magic can save people from being manipulated but some kind of content can be developed on social media and at the different levels of the education of children which can make them understand such activities and prevent them from getting brainwashed as if one does not know the possible harm of the message ,one might get trapped.However,if awareness is spread among people at a mass level to beware of such messages,people would think rationally once and thus millions can be saved from getting deviated from the wrong path.
Various terrorist organisations these days are using new media for the dissemination of their messages and for manipulating and brainwashing people which explains the research topic-New media and new terrorism: uses and abuses of social networking sites by terrorist organisations.
Terrorism is all about creating spectacle. Terrorists want people to see such ruthless acts such as killing done by them which would scare people and create immense fear in their minds.Terrorists want to reach a large number of people,in an instant and which would create deep impact on the minds of people.All these things can be met with great finesse with the help of social media which has thus become a widely used tool by the terrorist organisations to spread their messages.
Terrorism,moreover, is a dicey term to be used for anyone.The word is subjective in nature as for one person someone can be a terrorist but for other the same person can be a nationalist.It depends upon from which particular position one is looking at.But one thing is for certain that any kind of terrorist activity creates mass violence.
Modern terrorism uses different portals in two different ways- one is anonymity in web ,where one can be several persons at the same time and can be a male or a female depending upon the profile that is created because no one knows the person in the virtual world, apart from the particular portal.Here terrorists lead a secret life whereby they hide their true identity and live their life as a normal person.Another kind of portal which can be seen incase of Al Qaeda or certain other terrorist groups is where they have dedicated websites which display their rigid ideologies in a clear cut manner and put up different photos that implies their ideologies.
Most of the terrorist organisations always have a visual account ,such as youtube, because without videos , it does not work.They will have dedicated websites but those websites were always made in free to air websites so that if they are trapped ,they are trapped then they are trapped on the parent computer